The present invention relates to a thin covering folded in a telescopic manner as protection for a rod-like surgical instrument.
Thin coverings are known which serve to protect surgical instruments against septic contamination during surgery. In particular, highly sensitive surgical optical instruments, such as, for example, endoscopes, arthroscopes, orthoscopes, or surgical lasers require protective sheathings since it is difficult to sterilize them and accordingly they should not be contaminated. Use of a sheathing in the form of a sterile tube-like covering, however, eliminates the need for sterilization of the covered portions. Such thin coverings are intended for one-time use only.
Due to the great number of possible applications, different thin coverings have become known whose shapes vary according to their intended use. Thin coverings are known having a distinctly tubular shape with tube widths in a range from centimeters to decimeters and tube lengths in a range from decimeters to meters. For thin coverings having long lengths, the application of particularly tight coverings and the introduction into a thin covering of a surgical instrument, are often difficult tasks which require considerable skill.